What part of the country are you in? Climate?

Who all will be living in the house? Children?

Do you have elevations? What is the site like?

Looks nice. No way to read the dimensions, no orientation, no climate, no #family, so...

Nearly every floor plan has some issues:

- I would not want a sink on a short side of the L: it restrict the flow into a dining room, and forces everyone walking in to look at your sink.

We live in Wisconsin. Winters are fierce. The house is on a very FLAT piece of land we purchased that was once farm land. The back of the home faces North. We have one child with plans to expand our family by 1. Once we finalize our first floor we will move onto the basement where we will add a guest bedroom/bath. I hope this information help.

A few things I see quickly....

no coat closet.

seems to lack windows. Especially in bedrooms.

the kitchen/dining room relationship is odd w the wall and the sink there. The dining room seems an afterthought

In our current home we have our sink on the large island...and I hate it. I could place the sink in the corner? Nowhere else really. Yes lack of windows is my concern as well but not sure how to get around that. I’m okay with the windows in the bedrooms. Wish I could have some in the pantry, laundry, etc. Again, the garage occupies an entire side to our home and genuinely has caused some barriers...windows being a big one.

I would put in a closet in the office; this will be handy for supplies but also the room could be used as a bedroom if it has a closet. If you can spare the space--two dishwashers is a great luxury. I don't like the idea of a sink in the island unless there is no other place.

I like your plan in general.

I think a coat closet would be useful, particularly in Wisconsin. I am nofan of Jack and Jill bathrooms too.

I actually like your sink. it is true that there could be a few dirty plates there, but it is very convenient as you can easily put dirty plates near the sink after meals. it works well, particularly if you store plates and glasses on uppers there. sure 2 DW are a luxury, but with a 4 people family. is it really useful?

Random thoughts:

- Your plans don't show a driveway, and that's going to be a bit tricky with the garage openings facing "away" from the front door. This is very important -- let me illustrate:

The blue is the simple, builder-basic driveway that you're likely to plop in if you don't stop to consider ... and you'll need a BUNCH of concrete because you'll need the back-up space. The red is your sidewalk. Imagine your guests pull in and park in the blue space; human nature is to pull all the way up ... so the guest will be parked essentially "behind" the garage and will have to walk all the way around this large space ... and all the while, the guest will have no view of the front door, which is his goal.

The driveway for this house will need to be carefully considered, and it will be expensive to build, but it's important to the first-impression of the house as guests arrive.

- I understand you say he wants this garage ... but does it have to be attached in this way? He can get this same bloated garage ... without the problems this one is creating. Could you place the screen porch between the house and the garage? That would allow in more light. Do consider that more garage usually just means more clutter.

- The perimeter of the house is full of jigs-and-jogs, which drive up the price but add nothing in terms of usefulness. They also force the roofline into something complex, which will be expensive and more prone to leaks than a simple, straightforward roof.

- Reconsider the mudroom-laundry-half bath area. What you have now is essentially three little areas. None of them have natural light. If you flip-flop the space, look what happens:

Now you have a LARGE space for the family entrance and the laundry. Your dryer can vent directly to the outside, which is cheaper and more fire-safe. And you can have a window by the dryer, which will allow you to come home to a room with some natural light rather than a dark cave.

Note, too, that your closet is larger, and you still have that one bench area for the mudroom.

The bathroom is moved but is still the same.

You could even steal a couple feet form this space and enlarge the office a bit.

Since this door will remain open most of the time, I'd close this space off with a pocket door.

- A couple thoughts about your master entry: 1) Consider bringing furniture through those 90 degree turns. You could fix this with an exterior door into the back yard, which would also be nice for fire safety. 2) I'd rearrange the doors slightly so the closet could open into the little hallway. It's a personal thing, but I'd prefer fewer doors in the bedroom, and I'd prefer the closet light not spill out into the room while anyone's sleeping.

- The master bath toilet is oddly arranged.

- I like the big pantry! This would be an ideal spot for a hands-free swinging door.

- With a pantry that big, do you really need so much cabinetry? Yes, you really can have too much (I do).

- The kitchen would be much more pleasant if it had a window. As it's arranged, it will receive only secondary light filtered through other rooms. Is it the worst? No, but it's a very important room -- will you be satisfied with this?

- I hate-hate-hate the dining space. Note that everyone will be squishing through that one little bottleneck to enter the space. Then note that since this is a long-deep space, people will have to squeeze past other diners, and that won't be easy once a few people are seated. Finally, the dining room contains the ONLY access to the back yard, and once you place a table in this space, that door will not be easy to access. Visuals are useful -- here's your space with a table added and only ONE chair "pulled back" -- note that one pulled-back chair can prevent everyone from entering the dining room, the porch and the back yard.

- Where do you anticipate placing a TV in the living room? The only obvious spot I see is over the fireplace.

- If you place another window to the left of the fireplace, I think you'll be pleased -- light coming in from two sides is always a good thing.

- I like the office's location, but I would put a set of French doors in the center /facing the foyer. This would make for a lovely presentation as people enter the house. Nicer than the single door in the corner. If privacy is an issue, you can place curtains on the French doors.

- Is that switchback staircase an up or down? If it's going up, be sure you figure out a way to have a half-height storage space underneath. That's a large, expensive space -- and you should make every inch of it work for you.

- You should add windows to the bedroom side walls. All the bedrooms. As I mentioned earlier, natural light from two sides improves every room

- I like Jack & Jills, but this one isn't particularly well done. First, it needs storage -- ditch the duplicate sinks /allow for a stack of drawers on each side. Second, note that with this design the kid at the sink is disturbed by the sibling who pushes by to reach the toilet/tub room.

- I'd also consider enlarging the kids' closets.

I would push the living area exterior wall out. i can’t read the measurements but it seems kinda small for the only gathering, entertaining, family area. Once the furniture is placed, which will all need to float in the room you will Be weaving around furniture to get thru the room on a regular basis.

House will be dark with the back facing north. Especially in the winter. Especially the kitchen.

How big is your property?

Yes lack of windows is my concern as well but not sure how to get around that.

You get around that by designing a house that is only 1-2 rooms deep so all public rooms and all bedrooms can have windows on two walls. North/south you have 3 rooms deep in some areas. East west, you have 5 rooms deep.

You also do it by designing a house that is in a U, T, L, I or H shape.

You also do it by trying to locate the public rooms facing south orientation. That not only helps with light, but with passive solar heating/cooling which would be so important in your climate.

You also do it by not designing one floor at a time and then sticking a facade on the outside. The best way to design a house is to design the interior, exterior and how it fits on the lot at the same time. Even on a flat piece of property. Sounds like you're working with a draftsman and not a true designer.

Also why do you need to finalize the plans in 24 hours? Don't rush the process because it's a lot cheaper to get it right on paper than to live with poor design for as long as you live in the house. (And yes, that includes a dark house with little natural light.)

I guess the garage couldn't be a separate building so that the house could have some light?

Agree with these comments:

- the garage occupies an entire side to our home and genuinely has caused some barriers

- I would put in a closet in the office

- Once the furniture is placed, which will all need to float in the room you will Be weaving around furniture to get thru the room on a regular basis.

- You get around that by designing a house that is only 1-2 rooms deep so all public rooms and all bedrooms can have windows on two walls.

- Don't rush the process because it's a lot cheaper to get it right on paper than to live with poor design for as long as you live in the house.

- I guess the garage couldn't be a separate building so that the house could have some light?

In your office, consider adding a door to the walk in closet that you already have. Both sides can access it.

I failed to mention we will also have a 1000sq ft detached garage on the property. We have a 1.2 acre lot. Longer than it is wide.

While the lot itself may not be ideal, this again is a compromise that had to be made in order for me to be in the location I desire and to also be allowed to build the attached and detached garage space my husband needs.

Taking this into consideration, as well as the fact we wish to have a 3 bedroom ranch home...is what we have to work with. If anyone has suggestions on how to design a 3 bedroom ranch home that is only 1-2 rooms deep and allows us the luxury of additional windows...I’d be thrilled.

As you can imagine, as the future home owner, I am quite discouraged by this entire process. We have been to the drawing board 4x over now and cannot seem to get it right.

I would move the screened porch to the master bedroom/ dining room side.

"We have been to the drawing board 4x over now and cannot seem to get it right."

Maybe it is time to reevaluate who you have at the "drawing board"? Are you using a real architect?

"I failed to mention we will also have a 1000sq ft detached garage on the property. We have a 1.2 acre lot. Longer than it is wide."

You are NOT designing and building a house.

You are designing and building a garage compound, with attached living quarters tacked on as an afterthought.

With 1.2 acres, the current design makes absolutely no sense.

Since you are building a detached garage, why does the attached portion need to be so massive? Can't you build a normal-sized attached garage, then expand the size of the detached portion?

As a fellow Midwesterner, I fully understand the desire for a large attached garage. When I was a kid, we lived a short time in north Iowa. The poster is not kidding when she says the weather is FIERCE. I don’t believe a covered breezeway would suffice. Perhaps an enclosed, HVAC equipped hallway would work but an open one - no way.

As a longtime reader of this forum, I suggest that the original poster pay attention to the folks offering advice. Many are professionals, giving valuable insight into the process.

Not a pro. I would pull the entire house up to match the garage, and flip all the rooms so your main windows are on the south side. I live in MN and I know how important south facing windows are in the winter. Not even because of the benefits of passive solar - just for your sanity. There is nothing better than having the sun stream into your home (and WAY into your home since the sun is so low) on a cold winter day. Your house will not have that unless you have a glass front door (and that's the only place it will stream in).

If you pull the house up to match the front of the garage instead of the back, it will also mean your guests won't need to walk as far to get to your front door. And less shoveling of sidewalks.

I also think separating bedrooms on each side of the house results in all the public spaces being closed in, so decide how important it is for you to have that separation at the cost of light in your home. Your kids bedrooms have the best options for windows on 2 walls (and you're not taking advantage of that). I know people like the idea of separate kids & parent wings, but it's possible to get separation even with bedrooms on the same side. In our current home, our bedrooms are all on the second level, but they're arranged in a way that makes the master feel very separate from the kids rooms. It feels like a long walk when tending the kids at 2 AM. Your walk is a lot farther...and once the nighttime wakings are over, you'll still be hauling laundry across your house. Just something to think about.

We too built our home "around" the dream garage space. I'd shift the powder room door so that it is accessed from the mudroom area. Makes it easier to use the washroom when working in the garage. Also avoids the sightline into the bathroom from the living area.

I don’t believe a covered breezeway would suffice.

I believe I said an enclosed breezeway that also worked as a mudroom.

Here's an idea of where to start. What windows should get the sun? That's how you decide what area of the house these rooms should go.

Gain privacy for the master suite by putting the bedroom right in the SW corner, and the bath and walk in closet between the bedroom and other rooms.

"If anyone has suggestions on how to design a 3 bedroom ranch home that is only 1-2 rooms deep and allows us the luxury of additional windows...I’d be thrilled."

This has five bedrooms. The optional fourth-car garage could be extended in length to match what's shown on your original plan. In fact, it could go as far as the depth of the master bedroom closet, which would have the added bonus of creating a private interior courtyard where your kids could safely play. At any rate, this is a plan from a well-known builder from a development in Las Vegas. I'm posting it to show that you might want to consider an L-shaped or U-shaped plan.

Thank you everyone. I feel you have all confirmed what I already knew. I have not had a good feeling or experience from day one with these plans. Now how to proceed...at this point I am ready to scrap it all. Believe me, I do not want a garage compound ;). Unfortunately, my husband is an avid outdoorsman and we have 2 boats, four wheelers, trailers, sturgeon shacks, the list goes on. So unfortunately, I cannot get away from the garage... I think I need to be open to selling our current lot and looking for something that would better suit our needs.

And for those of you who asked if this was as drawn by an architect...the answer was no. This was a concern of mine since the start. While your comments were brutally honest, I appreciated the insight. I finally contacted our builder today.

"Believe me, I do not want a garage compound ;). Unfortunately, my husband is an avid outdoorsman and we have 2 boats, four wheelers, trailers, sturgeon shacks, the list goes on. So unfortunately, I cannot get away from the garage..."

But why does all of that stuff need to be stored in an attached garage?

It is not being accessed/used multiple times a day, so why can't it be in a separate building?

I've never heard of anyone storing this type & amount of stuff in an attached garage.

Build a normal sized ~2 car garage, then a detached pole barn.

It's that simple. Right?

Agreed, a "regular" garage and a pole building would be the way to go here - probably be more cost-effective in the long term as well. Especially if it means getting more natural light into the house. As a fellow Wisconsinite, I know exactly how important that can be in winter. And second winter. And third winter, known to others as "April"....

My sister-in-law's family has outdoor "toys" like yours does. They bought a property with 2 separate outbuildings to house them. So the house is normal with a double attached garage.

The trick to a bright house is not to make it too deep, so it doesn't have a dark centre. Then if you face the largest windows to the south, the low winter sun will penetrate the whole house. My parents' house is in Canada at about the same latitude as much of Wisconsin, and the winter sun comes in their big south windows and actually hits the opposite wall of the house. Not only does it heat the house wonderfully, it is so very pleasant in the winter. And in summer the sun is high in the sky and doesn't come in because they have a slightly larger than average overhang.

Their house is multi-level. If you want to do this with a ranch on a south-facing lot, the house needs to be wide and shallow. I searched Google for "shallow lot house plans" and came up with quite a few. Many of them have the garage off to one side, and I'd move the garage to an L shape as I suggested in an earlier post. That way the house faces the desirable south sun. The garage faces the undesirable west sun, and as an added benefit it creates a shady shelter for the back yard. You may even be able to find a stock plan that suits you. Search for plans that are for a wide shallow lot.

I have a ranch that is 25’ deep and 75’ long tons of windows almost all the S side and some in the LRand DR on the north side . We have 3 bedroom a huge kitchen and a huge LR a master that honestly could be smaller and a main bathroom and ensuite .We have huge overhangs ( very typical of true ranch houses) those over hanga keep the sun out in the summer and allow it to heat the main living spaces in the winter . IMo you need to get an architect that understands your needs .On that size of property there is no reason to be able to do what you need. At least give us the info on a drawing we can read and also the direction the house is facing.

Will see if this doesn’t blur the dimensions.

I don’t know how to upload a PDF; every photo blurs when I’m posting.

@Ashley Marie - You can't post a PDF to the forum - only photos. The last photo you posted isn't blurry, but it still doesn't enlarge enough (when I click on it, anyway) to read the dimensions.

“ If anyone has suggestions on how to design a 3 bedroom ranch home that is only 1-2 rooms deep and allows us the luxury of additional windows...I’d be thrilled.”

Here is an example, designed by architect on this forum. You can follow his links to see many more. https://www.houzz.com/discussions/4449548/the-journey-for-the-plan-has-finally-been-realized-long

https://www.gardenweb.com/user/architectrunnerguy

Every thing is looking good.

Yes you give Doug a call and work remotely with him and Nick. Both are excellent